http://www.accessonmainstreet.net Hooking up a usable world, one mainstream product at a time. Tue, 29 Jun 2010 13:01:02 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Welcome to Access on Main Street. We cover mainstream products that, by chance or design, make life easier for an elder or a person with a disability. We want to inform consumers, inspire designers, and wake up marketers to opportunities with these underserved customers. Please comment on our articles, ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2001/01/28/access-what-where/ Using an Apple iPhone app, L.A. citizens can now take a picture of a broken sidewalk or other municipal flaw and send it directly to the city government for instant relief.  How about reporting blocked curbcuts or illegal use of handicapped parking spaces? L.A. city government: Residents have a finger on ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/29/you-cant-spell-complain-without-la/ Prompt-It is a hardware device that turns text from your smart phone into a teleprompter. Could be a lifesaver for people with any type of dexterity or memory difficulties who have to give a presentation in situations where using other types of notes is difficult or undesirable. Ubergizmo: Prompt-It iPhone teleprompter http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/28/prompt-system/ Auto-Tune is software that can make bad singers sound competent, or game show hosts sound stoned. Wonder if the technology could also be used to modify the voices of people with dysarthric speech so that speech recognition applications would recognize them better? Gizmodo: What Is Last Week's "Alex Meets Auto-Tune" Jeopardy ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/28/tune-in-turn-on/ Looks like there are several universal design features to applaud in iOS 4, the new iPhone operating system. The one we're latching on to is systemwide implementation of typing assistance: auto-suggest and spell check. Access Tech News: iOS 4: The Complete Walkthrough and Guide http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/24/across-the-universal/ We've been used to the mouse for some time; grab it and move your hand to navigate a cursor around the screen. But what if a computer could just track your hand instead? Enter Mouseless, a prototype infrared system that directly interprets hand movements for cursor control; wonderful for people ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/17/theres-no-mouse-likeno-mouse/ Roger Ebert (again) on the value of Twitter as augmentative communication: "Twitter for me performs the function of a running conversation. For someone who cannot speak, it allows a way to unload my zingers and one-liners. One of the problems with written notes and computer voices is that, by their nature, ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/13/tweet-spot/ Fingerprint biometrics have been used for security for some time, but finally they're being applied to something really important--coffee making. The Xelsis Digital ID saves preference information for up to six people, and brews your cup your way at the swipe of a finger. Could have implications for making other ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/02/yuban-waiting-for-this/ Most of us have wallets or keychains bursting with loyalty and membership cards for various stores, and it doesn't even take having a disability to experience difficulty finding and retrieving them when needed. Enter the Numi Key, which stores all your card information electronically, then lets you retrieve as needed ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/02/beam-me-up-numi/ We've written before about automated Twitter messages as a communication strategy, but most examples were either hacks or left little leeway for consciously choosing a desired message. Enter Buddy Radio, a simple device currently being tested with elders by the UK's National Health Service. Turning the dial sends one of ... http://www.accessonmainstreet.net/2010/06/01/buddy-system/